We all face stressful situations in our life in some or other form; however those who know how to manage stress, learn to live a happy and healthy life. Excess of stress in life not only affects our mind-body system but also results in many kinds of ailments; and a stress-free life makes a person, energetic, confident and victorious.
Mental state of a person is flexible like a rubber band. However, if kept stretched for a long time, it can break. Alow level of stress can be compared to a small hole in a curtain, which initially appears small and invisible but if not repaired in time, keeps expanding; and eventually either a patch work is required to close that hole or one has to completely change the curtain. In the same way, when we face stress and do not use proper ways to reduce or get rid of it, it creates havoc.
In today’s world, considering “stress” as a synonym of “life” would not be an exaggeration. Since morning till night, we keep rushing to complete one thing or the other. Even twenty four hours time does not appear to be sufficient to complete all the assigned or necessary tasks. In addition, we all face pressures of many other adverse situations. Now the question is how we can live a stress-free life. The stress may be due to many reasons. Let us see what the experts of stress management say to deal with them.
1. Manage your time efficiently: Experts say that mismanagement of time is often a cause for stress. They have suggested the following ways to manage our time properly: (i) Do only one task at a time. (ii) Do urgent tasks immediately, do not procrastinate. Those who put off the tasks for future end up with a lot of unfinished tasks; this creates anxiety and sometimes results in big losses. (iii) Do not leave your tasks for others to finish. (iv) Do not rush through your tasks; at the same time don’t do them too slowly. Maintain an optimal pace of doing the tasks. (v) Use modern gadgets like smartphones, and tablets as aids to organize your time. (vi) Once you start a task then relax only after the task has been done. If you feel physically or mentally tired then take appropriate breaks.
Time has one simple rule – it flows continuously. We should understand this truth and utilize our years, months, days, hours, minutes, and seconds for a good purpose. We should plan in such a way that we don’t end up wasting even the tiniest second of life.
2. Eat healthy food and exercise daily: A nutritious meal plan provides you with all the nutrients to fulfill the basic requirement of keeping away deficiencies and also maintaining the basal metabolic rate. But it also carries calories which may be a cause of overweight. Exercise has many benefits, besides losing body fat. It keeps your heart fit, bones healthy, and maintains lung capacity, digestion is kept strong and muscles density is high to prevent joint problems. The mantra to a fit and healthy body is eating right food and exercising regularly. If you are physically fit, you are more likely to be mentally strong.
“The first step toward change is acceptance. Once you accept yourself, you open the door to change.” – Will Garcia
3. Understand your limits: The maxim ‘Do not bite off more than you can chew’ needs to be remembered constantly. We often tend to take more responsibilities than we are capable of carrying out. This is done to satisfy our ego. Know your limitations. Why take on additional loads that may cause more worries? You cannot gain peace of mind by expanding your external activities. Reduce your material engagements and spend time in prayer, introspection, and meditation. This will reduce those thoughts in your mind that make you restless. An uncluttered mind will produce greater peace of mind.
4. Do not crave for recognition: This world is full of selfish people. They seldom praise anybody without selfish motives. They may praise you today because you are in power; but no sooner than you are powerless they will forget your achievement and will start finding faults in you. Why do you wish to kill yourself in striving for their recognition? Their recognition is not worth the exertion. Do your duties ethically and sincerely.
5. Endure what cannot be cured: This is the best way to turn a disadvantage into an advantage. Every day we face numerous inconveniences, ailments, irritations, and accidents that are beyond our control. If we cannot control them or change them, we must learn to put up with these things. We must learn to endure them cheerfully. Believe in yourself and you will gain in terms of patience, inner strength and will power.
6. Meditate regularly: Meditation calms the mind and gets rid of disturbing thoughts. This is the highest state of peace of mind. Try and experience it yourself. If you meditate earnestly for half an hour every day, your mind will tend to become peaceful during the remaining twenty-three and half-hours. Your mind will not be easily disturbed as it was before. You would benefit by gradually increasing the period of daily meditation. You may think that this will interfere with your daily work. On the contrary, this will increase your efficiency and you will be able to produce better results in less time, thus lowering the stress.
Soure: Akhand Jyoti 2017 May
Credit : Freepik and story set